The Mirror
by Obsidian The Ghost Faced
Summary: A mirror sits in Shifu's room. The mirror cracks for no reason. Odd things begin to happen. Shifu looks for answers, and gets sucked into the mirror. Will he escape?
1. Chapter 1

-{-[]-}-Kung Fu Panda-{-[]-}-

-The Mirror-

**I**

_ _a few months after Lord Shen's attack__

It was dark over the Valley of Peace. A thunderstorm was lazily making its way through the secluded region. In the lower section of the Valley, the normally bustling village was eerily quiet as the villagers waited in their homes for the storm to pass. Even Mr. Ping - the noodle shop owner - had closed up his shop for the day, despite the loss of his usual customers. A sudden flash of lightning lit up the sky, casting shadows through the empty stone streets.

Further up the mountain stood the ornate Jade Palace, home to the guardians of the Valley. The outer training grounds were quickly turned into small ponds as the rain continued to fall. Master Shifu had thought it wiser to remain indoors for the time being, and took some time to meditate. He left his students to their own devices - Po, Mantis, and Monkey were embroiled in a heated game of mahjong, their shouts of trash-talking echoing throughout the halls. Crane and Viper had opted for sparring inside the massive training hall. Tigress had actually decided to venture outside to do some training in the forest - she claimed the thunder and lightning had a calming effect on her while she trained.

In his quarters, Shifu sat cross-legged on a soft mat. "Inner peace, inner peace..." His eyes were closed as he repeated the familiar mantra. A sudden noise broke his concentration. Opening his eyes, he cast a quick glance around the room. Everything was normal, nothing seemed out of place. '_I must just be getting old_' the red panda thought jokingly. His mind must have just been playing tricks on him, even more so from the recent events brought on by a war-mongering peacock by the name of Shen. But even the most dedicated warrior could still fall victim to worry and depression. '_Even I'm not immune to that_'. Shifu could still feel the pain subtly making his presence known with even the slightest movement. It had been a bit more difficult getting around the palace, but he'd never let it show, especially to his students. Those injuries would heal, given enough time. The emotional pain though, Shifu couldn't be sure if that kind of damage would heal as easily.

The same noise caught his ear again. '_What made that noise then_' Shifu thought. He looked toward the small chest near the door, and noticed the candles were blown out. A small, broken mirror sat between them. Shifu remembered the day he received it from Master Oogway - before he passed - and that the mirror had been undamaged for the longest time. But one day, it just fractured for no reason. Initially, Shifu had suspected someone of committing the act - namely Po, given the panda's clumsiness. But he and the five claimed innocence, leaving Shifu to wonder. And since that day a few months ago, strange things had been happening - the candles he lit near the mirror would just go out, odd noises were heard from nowhere, and just recently, Shifu swore that he could hear whispering from the cracks of the mirror itself.

'_It's just a mirror_' Shifu calmly reminded himself. '_Just an ordinary mirror_'. But he couldn't help thinking about something Oogway had told him the day he received the mirror - "_Nothing is ordinary, even the simplest object can hold the greatest secrets_". Shifu sighed. There was more to this mirror than met the eye, and Shifu was determined to find out what it was.

He moved closer, attempting to examine the mirror, when he felt something push against his chest - like a large hand trying to hold him back. Shifu's brow furrowed in frustration as he took a step back. After a moment he thought, '_a different approach then_'. Sitting cross-legged again, Shifu concentrated hard on the mirror. He fixed his eyes on the cracks while he continued his meditation, staring at his reflection. As seconds turned into minutes, Shifu could even hear the dust settling on the floor while he closed his eyes. Things were always so quiet when he meditated like this. '_Wait, it's never this quiet_'. Shifu wondered. Something was different in the room. A harsh breeze unexpectedly whipped across his face - and there was an odd odor coming from somewhere. Yet it smelled familiar, like smoke.

Shifu's eyes shot open. Without warning he found himself falling into a massive, fiery chasm. He tried frantically to slow his descent, but to no avail. Now the ground was getting too close, too fast. Shifu decided to focus his strength into cushioning his fall. Closing his eyes, he gathered the surrounding energy into his body, and formed a protective shield around himself. "I hope this works!" His robes were beginning to smolder as the fiery wind tore at him. Shifu could feel the skin on his hands blistering from the heat as he held them in front of him. '_It's just got to work, it's just got to_'. He could feel the cocoon of energy heating up as he fell still faster, a trail of fire streaming behind him. Shifu felt as if he were a comet streaking down to earth, if only this close to a horrendous death.

The ground was smoking. The remnants of a large tree lay splintered around the deep crater that had taken its place. Inside the crater, lay the partially burned body of Shifu. His energy shield held, but didn't absorb all of the impact when he crashed, knocking him unconscious. The fur on his face and hands were badly singed, and his robes had been blackened by the flames. After a few moments, Shifu slowly began to stir. He winced when he opened his eyes - the smoke had caused him some irritation, making his vision a bit bleary. He groaned as he sat up. '_At least there's nothing broken, I hope_', Shifu thought grimly as he felt his way around to find something to grab onto. Finally, he found a tree root and slowly hauled himself up and out of the crater.

When Shifu reached the top, he seated himself on the edge to let his eyes clear. The ground around him was still burning, smoke rising from the scorched earth. The stench of charred wood was nearly unbearable as it choked the precious oxygen from Shifu's lungs. He started to cough violently, nearly sending himself back into the hole. Shifu had to get away from here before he choked to death. Opening his eyes wide, he could now at least make out blurry shapes and patches of light. '_It'll have to do until I get away from this smoke_'. Summoning every ounce of strength he had left, he willed his legs to move and ran as fast as he could. 

Shifu could hear his heart beating loudly in his ears as he half-stumbled, half-ran through the forest. The old master had the will, but his body was failing him. His face and hands felt as if they were on fire again; Shifu had to find some water for his burns quick. A sound caught his ear, it sounded like running water. '_Maybe there's a stream nearby_'. Not more than a few dozen feet away, lay a small stream. Shifu hobbled over and slowly immersed himself in the cold water. His burns were soothed as he lay in the shallow stream. "Now all I have to do is figure out where I am..." he said tiredly.

After a few hours of rest, Shifu sat up to crawl out of the stream. His fur was covered in black, flaking patches - apparently the energy he summoned was healing him. But as he got up, Shifu spotted a tree untouched by the inferno. He decided to climb to the top to get an idea of where he was. As he reached the top, what he saw shocked him. The forest he landed in was almost completely gone, yet the fire would advance no further than the stream. "What caused this? Or more importantly...who caused this?", Shifu wondered. As he looked back towards the stream, he could see a tall hill. "There must be something over that hill, hopefully a village". Shifu climbed down and decided to head in that direction. "But more importantly, I have to find out where I am"...


	2. Chapter 2

-{-[]-}-Kung Fu Panda-{-[]-}-

-The Mirror-

** II **

Shifu climbed to the top of the hill, and what he saw made his heart shudder with despair. A small village lay before him completely in ruins, any signs of life having been silenced. In a doorway a few feet away, something caught Shifu's eye - it was a doll, seemingly untouched by the ashes. "What happened here..." It was as if someone left it there to be found. "It's a memorial", Shifu said quietly. There were some wildflowers growing nearby. He decided to pick a few to leave next to the doll in the doorway. "I wish I could have saved you, any of you..." When he stood, he started walking on. Shifu took one last look at the village, his eyes wet with tears.

He followed the rocky path up to where the tree line ended. Gradually the forest gave way to grassy hills, with large rock formations dotting the landscape. As Shifu went on, the terrain became much rockier as a mountain range came into view. "This is the Mountain Pass...but...then that means...". The realization began to dawn on Shifu - he was home. But something was terribly, terribly wrong. "It can't be..." The Pass was the only route through the mountains, and on the other end was a thousand-mile long canyon called "The Devil's Mouth". Crossing it meant traversing the "Thread Of Hope" - a lengthy rope bridge spanning the massive chasm. Except, the bridge was no longer made of rope and wood. It was iron.

"That bridge was never made of iron before." Shifu mulled over the entirety of the situation, and just could not make sense of it. As he looked back at the bridge, Shifu noticed sentries armed with long tubes banded with strips of iron around them. The sentries were wearing some strange-looking armor too. "Wait a minute, where have I seen those?" _Cannons._ Lord Shen used these destructive things against him, the Five, and the Dragon Warrior in Gongmen City. Shifu could still remember the thunder and fire spewing from the mouths of those infernal machines. Further down at every other point were larger tubes mounted on poles that could swivel about to take on multiple threats. It had smaller tubes around the mouth, apparently to fire more cannonballs. "Lord Shen has invaded the valley. But isn't he dead? And where are the Five and Po?" he pondered. He had to get to the Jade Palace, but how could he do it without alerting the sentries along the way?

Shifu hid himself behind a small pile of rocks overlooking the bridge. After a few tense moments, a long caravan of merchants came into view. "They must be delivering supplies into the Valley." Most of the travelers were wearing cloaks to protect against the wind. _Perfect, I can use one of those cloaks to sneak in with the merchants_. Waiting for the last cart to pass, he whipped off a blanket and wrapped it around himself. Hopefully the sentries wouldn't notice another merchant traveling with the long line of carts. Shifu looked around warily as the armed rhinos watched him pass, but didn't seem to pay him much attention. After a few hours, they made it to the closest village just outside of the Valley, Artisan Village. Just like the bridge, the village was surrounded by sentries and cannons. And there were tall pillars with smoke billowing from the tops towering over the homes and shops. _It's just like Gongmen City, there were factories manufacturing cannons._ Shifu noticed some villagers walking from one of the factories with pieces of armor and cannon barrels. A few of the merchants had empty carts and were filling them up with cannons and armor. _So where are they taking them?_

The Valley of Peace lay a few miles ahead of the Village. Shifu had opted to hide on one of the carts, letting his tired body rest. Suddenly the cart came to a stop. "Halt! State your business in the Valley!" he heard a gruff voice say. _Since when are there guards in the Valley?, _Shifu thought. "We are merchants here from the forges. There are fresh armor and cannons with us." Shifu quietly slipped out of the back and stood near the other carts. When he looked toward the entrance, there was a huge gate blocking the way. The gate was followed by massive walls traveling out from both sides. He could see one the guards looking down from atop the gate. Unlike the sentries along the bridge, these guards wore large mechanical suits of armor with cannons equipped on the arms. Occasionally jets of steam escaped from vents along the sides. "Call over the captain! We need to make sure this shipment checks out." Another armored suit walked over to inspect the carts. "This had better be important soldier, the Master hates having uninvited guests come into his city." The metallic voice caught Shifu's attention almost immediately, and oddly enough it sounded - feminine. "These merchants have supplies for the Master's forces Captain." After looking them over, the captain gave the all-clear to open the gates. "Very well, but don't waste my time again. Because if you do, I will rip you from that armor and grind you into the dirt. Is that understood?" "Yes Mistress!" the soldier replied anxiously. _That voice, no...it can't be...Tigress?_


	3. Chapter 3

-{-[]-}-Kung Fu Panda-{-[]-}-

-The Mirror-

** III **

Shifu couldn't believe his ears. From the mouth of this metal monstrosity came the voice of his own student Tigress. He almost spoke her name before he caught himself, realizing he would be captured if he did. The merchants were waiting to be granted access into the city, staring fearfully at Tigress' helmed face. "Make sure their papers are in order chief, and let them in." With a sigh, the merchants gratefully made their way past the gates before Tigress put a massive hand on one's shoulder. "The Master sends his thanks to you, but tread carefully. He is not always as patient with everyone..." Turning to the other guards, she bellowed "BACK TO YOUR POSTS!" The other armored soldiers immediately scurried out of her sight, not wanting to incur more of her wrath.

A sign stood just inside the gate that read: 'Bastion City'. _What_ _has happened to the valley?,_ Shifu thought. It was as if it never existed. Buildings made of iron stood amongst the old stonework. Smokestacks as tall as trees dominated the landscape. The stone paths - usually weathered but clean - were stained black from the smoke. Even the skies were an ominous bloody-red, giving Shifu the impression of standing inside an angry volcano. Suddenly, the ground shook as a loud 'BANG!' rang out, knocking Shifu from his feet. Fire shot up into the sky, igniting the air. "TAKE COVER! CLEAR THE AREA NOW!" a voice shouted from behind him. More suits came charging down the path, clearing the streets of people. The lead suit was different - its arms were longer, and its legs shorter. _Like a monkey..._

Shifu guessed that if Tigress and Monkey were wearing armor, then all of the Five were. He was mid-thought when one of the nearby buildings began to collapse. In its path was a family of rabbits, seeking refuge from the chaos below. Perched just above their heads was a chunk of stone about to crush them. "NO!" Like a bolt of lightning, Shifu shot toward the family, his hand extended. In a flash, the chunk shattered into dust. "Are you alright?" At that moment, everyone stopped. The family stared at him in shock. "Are you alright?" he asked again. They said nothing, scurrying away in fear. He at least expected a response, but it's as if they were afraid of something. Or someone. That's when he heard those massive feet coming his way.

"HALT! YOU ARE BREAKING MARTIAL LAW CITIZEN", Monkey' s voice boomed. His hand tried to grab Shifu, but he slipped out of his reach. He sprinted up the street, passing shocked and frightened villagers. But Monkey was right behind him, leaping across the rooftops like a maniac. He had all the advantages - this village was completely alien, Shifu may as well have been running blind. Corner after corner, Monkey's screeching met him where ever he turned. "Where can I go?" he said, breathing heavily. "Nowhere" he heard from above. Terrified he looked up, and saw a massive metal bird gazing at him with burning eyes. "Crane" "You''re coming with us Shifu", Monkey growled. "The Master won't want to miss seeing you again...", Crane laughed as he grabbed Shifu by his neck. "Because the last time I checked, you were dead..." "What!?" he gasped before something hit his head. He could hear Crane and Monkey's crazed laughter before he blacked out.

**Author's Note**: Hi to all who are reading the story. I hope you like it. This chapter is short, but it serves as a bridge to the next chapter, where we will see the mastermind behind the nightmare...


End file.
